Arkansas’ troubles in the early innings continued Saturday afternoon and this time the hole was too deep to escape.
A five-run first inning sent the 22nd-ranked Razorbacks into a deficit they never seriously threatened to erase, as 18th-ranked Ole Miss rolled to an 11-4 victory in front of 10,491 fans at Baum-Walker Stadium.
The loss evened the SEC series at one game apiece and set up a rubber match Sunday at 2 p.m. on SEC Network.
It was a familiar and painful script for Arkansas, which has now surrendered multi-run first innings in back-to-back games.
“We couldn’t string anything together,” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said.
Ole Miss designated hitter Collin Reuter delivered the knockout blow just 16 pitches into the game, hitting a wind-aided grand slam 348 feet to left field on the very first pitch after an RBI single had given the Rebels a 1-0 lead.
Just like that, the Razorbacks (31-17, 12-11 SEC) were chasing a 5-0 deficit before most of the crowd had settled in.
Townsend Controls the Zone
Staring down a five-run deficit is tough enough. Doing it against Cade Townsend made it feel insurmountable.
The Ole Miss sophomore right-hander came in with a 2.42 ERA over 52 innings this season and he looked every bit that sharp Saturday.
Townsend worked 5 2/3 innings, allowing just two runs on four hits with one walk and five strikeouts on 91 pitches.
The Razorbacks worked deep counts against him throughout the afternoon, but he came out on top in those battles more often than not.
“He was just throwing multiple pitches around the zone for strikes,” Arkansas shortstop Camden Kozeal said. “He wasn’t throwing the fastball as much as we thought he might do, especially against a couple of our guys.”
Van Horn acknowledged the obvious challenge of climbing back into a game against a pitcher of Townsend’s caliber.
“When you’ve got a guy like Townsend on the mound that hasn’t given up anything really this year, it’s hard to climb back in the game,” Van Horn said. “He didn’t let us.”
Townsend wasn’t lifted until he walked Kozeal without a strike in the sixth inning. By then, the Rebels led 7-2 and any realistic hope for a Razorback comeback had long since faded.
Hogs Rely on the Long Ball
Every Arkansas run Saturday came via the home run, which underscored just how little sustained offense the Hogs were able to generate.
Maika Niu delivered the biggest blow, a two-run shot 419 feet to left field in the sixth inning off Townsend that cut the deficit to 7-2. Kuhio Aloy followed with a solo homer 372 feet to left in the seventh — his second home run in as many games — and Kozeal went deep 397 feet to left-center in the eighth.
But stringing together baserunners? That remained an issue. Arkansas loaded the bases against Townsend and reliever Hudson Calhoun in the bottom of the sixth only to come away empty when Damian Ruiz grounded into a fielder’s choice.
“We had the bases loaded and we had a hitter get jammed first pitch with a nice cutter,” Van Horn said.
Gibler Eats Innings, Saves Bullpen
With the game slipping away early, Arkansas starter Cole Gibler did what he could to protect the bullpen ahead of Sunday’s decisive game. The right-hander threw a career-high 95 pitches across 5 1/3 innings, surrendering seven runs on nine hits with a walk and a career-best nine strikeouts.
It wasn’t pretty, but Van Horn found genuine value in Gibler’s durability.
“That was the positive of the day was that once we were down that far early, with them having Townsend on the mound, that Gibler stayed out there for 95 pitches,” Van Horn said, “and … pitched pretty well and gave us an opportunity to maybe climb back in the game, which we didn’t do, but we didn’t have to burn some of our guys.”
Tate McGuire followed with 2 2/3 innings of two-run ball and Jackson Kircher closed out the ninth, allowing two runs while throwing 24 pitches. Neither situation was high-leverage enough to warrant deploying Van Horn’s most trusted arms.
Razorbacks Keep Aces in Reserve
That strategic conservation could pay significant dividends Sunday. Pitchers Gabe Gaeckle, Ethan McElvain, Parker Coil and Steele Eaves have yet to appear in the series, giving the Hogs a deep and rested arsenal for a winner-take-all Game 3.
“Those guys gave us an opportunity to save some guys that we’ve used in more leverage-type situations,” Van Horn said, “so hopefully we’ll bounce back and play better tomorrow.”
The Razorbacks will need exactly that kind of performance to take the series. Ole Miss came into Saturday’s game having dropped four straight but looked nothing like a struggling team.
The first inning set the tone and the Rebels never let Arkansas get close enough to shift the momentum.
The series rubber match tips off Sunday at 2 p.m. and airs on SEC Network with both clubs sitting at 12-11 in league play.
